Nicholas Lisi / The Post-StandardBacked up traffic on Route 81 southbound in Syracuse

New York State law VTL-1120 states that a vehicle should be driven on the right half of the roadway except when overtaking or passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction. The law is rarely enforced, but states like New Jersey are making it a priority.

The New Jersey Senate Transportation Committee advanced a proposal Monday to increase fines for drivers who fail to stay right except to pass, according to NJ.com.

The bill suggests increasing the current fine from $50-$200 to $100-$300, plus another $50 to pay for signs letting out-of-state drivers know about New Jersey's strict enforcement of the law.

Sen. Donald Norcross (D-Camden) is sponsoring Bill No. 520, which was originally introduced to the Senate Transportation Committee on January 10. He thinks that the bill will be useful in resolving more than just traffic jams.

"Having conversations with law enforcement, they refer to this as one of the triggers for road rage," Norcross told The Star-Ledger.

Norcross also said that the biggest offenders of the law tend to be out-of-state drivers. He hopes that the fine increase and new signs will raise awareness as those drivers enter the state, making the roads a little safer.

Sen. Joseph Pennacchio (R-Morris) stands in opposition to the New Jersey bill. The Senator told The Star-Ledger that increasing fines in a state where fees are already high can be seen as "Draconian."

"We had the move over law last week that said you've got to move from the right to the left. Now we get the move-from-the-left-to-the-right law," Pennacchio said. "Eventually, we're going to run out of lanes."

Pennacchio is referring to a New Jersey measure that proposed drivers be required to slow down and move over when approaching a stopped emergency vehicle with flashing lights. New York State amended its version of the "move over" law on January 1, 2012, expanding the law to include tow trucks and maintenance vehicles.

Other states have also revamped enforcement on left-lane laws.

According to Newsday, Washington state troopers pulled over 223 left-lane campers in one day last May for ignoring the law. The police ended up letting 199 drivers, most of whom said they didn't know left-lane camping was against the law, off with just a warning. In New Jersey, there were 5,127 tickets written for violations of the stay right law last year.

What do you think? Should New York State enforce stricter penalties for left-lane campers?